Getting merry with berries in Kahnawake

Celebrating customs through strawberries The Mohawk reserve is holding its 3rd Strawberry Food Festival this month – and it has close ties to the community's traditions and customs.

It’s the time of year when people in Kahnawake are having a berry good time.

June and July mark the third annual Strawberry Food Festival and, during which the community celebrates and eats dishes made from the titular fruit.

“Strawberry season started in early June,” said Raven Swamp of the Kahnawake Community Garden. “The strawberry plants were growing so much fruit that we were encouraging community members to come out to the community garden to pick for themselves, too.”

The fruit is held sacred in the Kanien’keha’ka culture and are traditionally used to help treat women with blood illnesses.

“It’s one of the first fruits to show itself after the long winter,” said Swamp. “It’s symbolic of life. We see it in the spring, life beginning again. It’s opening the gardens for the harvest.”

After June’s harvest, July can get started with some sweetness. The festival allows businesses and restaurants to show off their strawberry creations: strawberry juice, strawberry chicken salad, strawberry salad dressing and many others.

The festival also aims to get residents to buy local.

“IF you buy local, you’re helping somebody send their kid to school or play in a sport,” said Kimberly Cross from the Kahnawake Welcome Centre. “You’re helping your neighbours, you’re helping the local economy and helping make sure everyone is taken care of.”

The festival is scheduled to go on until the end of July.